Most people think that the proposal is a strictly male tradition. And yet. In some countries not very far from France, women usually make their marriage proposal on the day that marks a leap year.
The day women make their marriage proposal
What's the coolest thing that happens every 4 years besides the World Cup, of course? Leap years. Well, for employees this means having to work an extra day. But in Ireland, women can take advantage of February 29th to propose instead of waiting for their man to decide.
The tradition dates back to the 5th century when St Brigid of Kildare complained to St Patrick that women had to wait for their man's marriage proposal. He then decided that women could take the lead on this day.
Better still, the Scots passed a similar law in 1288. The icing on the cake, any man who refused such an advance on February 29 had to compensate the lady with a gift, for example a pair of gloves (which is very useful to hide the absence of ring). The law was signed by Queen Margaret (or rather her regency, as she was only 5 years old at the time).
A rising trend
That said, in many countries women don't wait for leap years to propose. Either they take the initiative or they respond by offering their own men's engagement ring in return. This means that a new market is opening up, that of men's rings symbolizing this commitment.
In the United States, this product is called the "management ring", since until recently the engagement ring was necessarily for women. Like men's jewelry, this product is attracting more and more interest.
“Reverse or mutual marriage proposals are growing in popularity, ” said Severine Ferrari, editor-in-chief and founder of Propose Too and Engagement 101. “There are more and more of men who wear their wedding rings before the ceremony. All of these new behaviors provide business opportunities for jewelry stores. »